Although life insurance is a very important part of financial planning, it is often overlooked or pushed to the side until it is too late.
When you are younger, you may feel invincible and like you are going to live forever but the reality is, death is certain for us all. The problem is, you do not know when you will have that date with destiny.
The worst thing that can happen is you pass away with financial obligations that burden your family. Not to mention, not having enough funds to take care of your final arrangements and provide for immediate family members who were dependent upon your financial resources.
We have all seen the Go Fund Me campaigns for those who were not adequately prepared to cover the cost of homegoing services including burial. This is very stressful to family members not to mention it can be embarrassing.
To ensure that you are prepared in the event of your untimely death, it is imperative to make sure you have enough assets to cover your final arrangements. Life insurance comes into play when you do not have a substantial cash reserve to cover final expenses and to provide funds to continue to take care of immediate family members such as your spouse and children.
When purchasing life insurance, it’s important to get an amount that covers your insurance needs and it’s best to get a policy with an extended term period. When you are younger and healthier, it’s pretty inexpensive to get a nice size 30-year term policy. They key is to get life insurance while you are young and healthy because as you age and are faced with health issues, you will find that the cost of life insurance becomes very costly and in some cases you may even become uninsured.
You may feel like you do not need a lot of insurance when you are younger however, it’s good to plan ahead. Think about life transitions such as getting married and starting a family. Since life insurance is typically less expensive when you are younger, you may be able to afford getting a larger amount than you may need based on your current financial situation but preparing ahead can save you a lot of money in the long run.
The takeaway is, unless you are financially prepared and able to self-insure from your existing assets, you need to get some life insurance. It will give you peace of mind to know that when the time comes, everything will be taken care of, and your family can focus on grieving instead of scrambling to figure out how to raise funds for your homegoing.
